Lasting machine



Dec. 8, 1942,

LASTING MACHINE Filed Jan. 21, 1942 T. P. COURCHENE Patented Dec. 8,1942 LASTING MACHINE Theodore 'P. Courchene, Beverly, Mass, assignor toUnited Shoe Machinery Corporation, Flemington, N. J a corporation of NewJersey Application January 21, 1942, Serial No. 427,547

9 Claims.

This invention relates to lasting machines, and has particularly in viewthe provision of improvements in machines constructed generally asdisclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,101,069, granted onDecember '7, 1937, on an application of B. J orgensens. The invention isaccordingly herein illustrated as embodied in a modification of amachine of that type, but it is to be understood that it is not thuslimited in its applicability.

A machine such as disclosed in the above-mentioned Letters Patent isprovided with toe-lasting means which applies a pull to the toe-endportion of the upper and also wipes it heightwise of the last inresponse to a heightwise movement of the shoe and last. Movable with theshoe, in response to pressure of the shoe thereon, are a toe rest and aheel-end support which are mounted independently of each other and arecontrolled respectively by difierent springs yieldable to permit theirmovements. The heightwise movement of the shoe is efiected by a toepresser foot and a heel presser foot arranged to engage the bottom ofthe toe and heel ends of the shoe, respectively, and operated bydifferent mechanisms, each presser foot being adjustable independentlyof the other in directions heightwise' of the shoe to vary the limit ofmovement of the corresponding end of the shoe, The toe-lasting meansfurther includes wipers which after the heightwise movement of the shoewipe the margin of the toe end of the upper inwardly over an insole onthe last. Thereafter both presser feet are somewhat retracted to permitthe shoe to be pressed more forcibly against the wipers by thespring-controlled toe rest, so that the overwiper margin of the upperwill be pressed more firmly against the insole and will be securelyfastened thereto by adhesive commonly used for this purpose in lastingshoes by machines of the illustrative type.

With reference, for example, to an organization such as above outlined,objects of the present invention are to afiord better insurance that theshoe will be positioned in proper relation to the toe-lasting means, tosimplify the construction of the machine and to facilitate the usethereof. For the purposes in view, the construction herein shown is suchthat the heightwise movement of the shoe is efiected solely byengagement with the bottom of the toe end of the shoe, the heel presserfoot and its operating mechanism used heretofore being dispensed with,and is further such that the movement of the heel-end support of the toerest. More particularly, mechanism operated by the movement of the toerest in response to pressure of the shoe thereon serves to impartpositively to the heel-end support a movement ofthe same extent as thatof the toe ,its toe end and the plane of the wipers when the wipers Wipethe upper inwardly over the insole. Since, moreover, the heel-endsupport cannot move reversely any farther than the toe rest when the toepresser foot is retracted to permit the shoe to be pressed more firmlyagainst the wipers by the toe rest, insurance is afforded that theproper relation between the shoe and the wipers will still be maintainedat that time. Still another advantage in control of the shoe 9:, \isthat any adjustment to vary the limit of the with the the shoe isderived from the movement 55 heightwise movement of the shoe cannotresult in tipping the shoe relatively to the wipers, since it is onlythe toe presser foot which is adjustable for that purpose, asdistinguished'from independent adjustment of the toe presser foot andthe heel presser foot in the construction used heretofore. It is furtherto beobserved that because of the elimination of the heel presser footthe operator may, without danger of injury, .steady the shoe with hishand until it is engaged by the toe presser foot and, when the machineis not provided with automatic shoe-removing means such as issometimes'used, may reach for the shoe sooner to remove it than if aheel presser foot were present.

The novel features of the invention will now be more particularlydescribed with reference to the accompanying drawing and thereafterpointed out in the claims.

In the drawing,

Fig. 1 is a view partly in front elevation and partly in verticalsection of a portion of a machine of the type illustrated in thepreviously mentioned Letters Patent as modified for purposes of thepresent invention, the parts of the machine being shown in the positionswhich they occupy just prior to the heightwise movement of the shoe; I

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 11-11 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view illustrating the relation of the toe-lastingmeans to the shoe at the completion of the lasting operation,

In view of the disclosure of the above-mentioned Letters Patent and ofother Letters Patent referred to therein, the present description willbe confined to such portions of the machine as it is necessary to referto for an understanding of the invention. The machine is provided withtoelasting means including a gripper 2 for gripping the margin of thetoe-end portion of the upper and for applying a pull to the upper inresponse to heightwise movement of the shoe and last in a downwarddirection, and including also a toe former 4 which wipes the toe-endportion of the upper heightwise of the last in response to that movementof the shoe and last. Included also in the toe-lasting means are wipers6 which thereafter wipe the margin of the toe end of the upper inwardlyover an insole on the last. Movable downwardly with the shoe in responseto pressure of the top of the toe end of the shoe thereon is a toe rest8 which serves as a forepart support for the shoe and is supported onthe upper end of 'a hollow plunger l slidingly movable downwardly inaholder l2 against the resitsance of a spring M. The lower end of thisspring abuts against a portion of the holder l2 and its upper end abutsagainst the head l6 of a rod 18 which extends through the spring anddownwardly beyond the holder, the head of the rod being engaged by theplunger Ill. The heelend portion of the shoe is controlled by a heelendsupport2ll which includes a slide 22 movable downwardly with the shoeagainst the resistance of a spring 24 in guideways provided by a portion26 of the frame of the machine. The slide 22 carries a block 28 arrangedto engage the top face of the heel end of the last and provided with apin 30 arranged to extend into the spindle hole of the last, the block28 being supported on the upper end of a bar 32 which is verticallyadjustable relatively to the slide 22 by a hand-operated pinion 3 1engaging rack teeth on the bar. Also carried by the slide 22 in itsvertical movements is a heel band 36 which embraces and clamps the shoeabout its heel end.

For moving the forepart of the shoe downwardly against the resistance ofthe spring M which controls the toe rest there is provided apresser'foot 38 arranged to engage the bottom of the toe endof theinsole, this presser foot being carried by an arm 40 which is swungforwardly by the operator to bring the presser foot to a position overthe bottom of the shoe and is thereafter moved downwardly in the poweroperation of the machine. The presser foot 38 is directly supported by aslide 42 which is vertically adjustable relatively to the arm 40 bymeans of a screw 44 to vary the limit 'of the downward movement of theforepart of the shoe. A machine of the type shown in the previouslymentioned Letters Patent has been further provided heretofore with aheel presser foot which in the power operation of the machine is swungto a position over the heelend'of the shoe and is moved downwardly toimpart downward movement to the heel end of the shoe and the heelendsupport 20 against the 'resistance of the spring 24. In the constructionherein shown, for purposes of the present invention, such'a heel presserfoot and its operating mechanism are dispensed with, and mechanism isprovided for moving the heel-end support 29 downwardly with the shoe bythe downward movement of the toe rest 8. The provision of such mechanismrenders it practicable to depress the whole shoe and its supportingmeans solely by the pressure applied to the bottom of the forepart ofthe shoe by the presser foot 38. The mechanism for moving the heel-endsupport downwardlycomprises a lever 45 which is fast on a horizontalshaft 48 mounted in bearings in the frame of the machine and is providedwith two forwardly extending arms 50 in the front ends of which issupported a rod 52. The head of a screw 54 which is threaded forpurposes of adjustment in the lower end of the rod I8 is arranged torest on the rod 52, and mounted on one end of this rod is a roll 56arranged to engage the upper face of a lug 58 on the slide 22. It willthus be seen that when the toe rest 8 is moved downwardly by thepressure of the shoe thereon it acts positively through the rod l8 toswing the lever 46 in a downward direction, and the lever actspositively on the slide 22 of the heel-end support 20 to impart to theheel-end support simultaneously with the toe rest a downward movement ofthe same extent as that of the toe rest. Insurance is thus aiforded thatas the shoe is moved down-' wardly it will not be tipped about any axisextending widthwise thereof in such manner asto afiect undesirably therelation of the bottom of the toe end of the shoe to the wipers in thisre-' spect being preliminarily determined by upward or downwardadjustment of the bar 32 relatively to the slide 22. e

After the wipers 6 have wiped the margin of the upper inwardly over theinsole the presser foot 38 is moved somewhat upwardly by the arm #0, asheretofore, to permit the toe end of the shoe to be forced more firmlyup against the wipers by the spring-controlled toe rest 8, asillustrated in Fig. 3. It will be evident that the heel-end support 20accompanies the toe rest in this upward movement, but cannot be movedany farther upwardly by its spring 24 than the toe to tip the shoe insuch manner as to cause the wipers to apply unequal pressures to themargin 7 of the upper in different locations. It will further be evidentthat any adjustment of the presser foot 38 by the screw 44 serves tovary the limit of downward movement of the whole shoe without involvingany possibility of tipping the shoe, whereas heretofore independentadjustments of the toe presser foot andthe heel presser foot have beennecessary for this purpose and such adjustments have had to becarefully, coordinated to provide for the desired relation between thebottom of the toe end of the shoe and the plane of the toe wipers. Stillother advantages involved in the construction herein shown are that byreason of the absence of the heel presser foot the operator may, withoutdanger of injury, control the shoe with his hand in the power operationof the machine until it is engaged by the presser foot 38, and thatwhen, as herein illustrated, the machine is not provided with anyautomatic means for removing the shoe from its supporting means afterthe lasting operation, the operator may reach for the shoe sooner toremove it than if a heel presser foot were present.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a lasting machine, the combination with lasting means, of meansfor moving a shoe and its last heightwise relatively to said lastingmeans by engagement with the bottom of the forepart of the shoe, asupport for the top of the forepart of the shoe movable with the shoe bythe pressure of the shoe thereon, a heel-end support mountedindependently of said forepart support to move also with the shoe, andmechanism for thus moving said heel-end support by the movement of theforepart support.

2. In a lasting machine, the combination with lasting means, of meansfor moving a shoe and its last heightwise relatively to said lastingmeans by engagement with the bottom of the forepart of the shoe, asupport for the top of the forepart of the shoe movable with the shoe bythe pressure of the shoe thereon, a heelend support mountedindependently of said forepart support to move also with the shoe, andpositive means for thus moving said heel-end support the same distanceas the forepart support by the movement of the forepart support.

3. In a lasting machine, the combination with lasting means, of meansfor moving a shoe and its last heightwise relatively to said lastingmeans by engagement with the bottom of the forepart of the shoe, asupport for the top of the forepart of the shoe movable with the shoe bythe pressure of the shoe thereon, a spring against the resistance ofwhich the forepart support is thus movable, a heel-end support guidedindependently of said forepart support to move also with the shoe,another spring against the resistance of which said heel-end support isthus movable, and mechanism arranged to be operated by the movement ofsaid forepart support thus to move the heel-end support.

4. In a lasting machine, the combination with lasting means, of meansfor moving a shoe and its last heightwise relatively to said lastingmeans by engagement with the bottom of the forepart of the shoe, asupport for the top of the forepart of the shoe movable with the shoe bythe pressure of the shoe thereon, a heel-end support mounted to movealso with the shoe, and a lever arranged to be operated by the movementof said forepart support thus to move the heel-end support.

5. In a lasting machine, the combination with lasting means, of meansfor moving a shoe and its last heightwise relatively to said lastingmeans by engagement with the bottom of the forepart of the shoe, asupport for the top of the forepart of the shoe movable with the shoe bythe pressure of the shoe thereon, a heel-end support mounted to movealso with the shoe, a lever mounted to swing in a direction heightwiseof the shoe thus to move the heel-end support, and positive means foroperating said lever by the movement of the forepart support.

6. In a lasting machine, the combination with toe-lasting means, ofmeans for moving a shoe and its last heightwise relatively to saidtoelasting means by engagement with the bottom of the forepart only ofthe shoe to cause the lasting means to conform the toe end of the upperto the last, a toe rest arranged to engage the top of the toe end of theshoe and movable with the shoe by the pressure of the shoe thereon, aheel-end support arranged to engage the heel end of the last, saidheel-end support being mounted independently of the toe rest to movealso with the shoe when the shoe receives its heightwise movement, andmechanism for thus moving said heel-end support by the movement of thetoe rest.

7. In a lasting machine, the combination with toe-lasting means, ofmeans for moving a shoe and its last heightwise relatively to saidtoelasting means by engagement with the bottom of the forepart only ofthe shoe to cause the lasting means to conform the toe end of the upperto the last, a toe rest arranged to engage the top of the toe end of theshoe and movable with the shoe by the pressure of the shoe thereon, aheel-end support arranged to engage the heel end of the last, saidheel-end support being mounted independently of the toe rest to movealso with the shoe when the shoe receives its heightwise movement, andmechanism including a lever arranged to be operated by the movement ofthe toe rest-thus to move the heel-end support the same distance as thetoe rest.

8. In a lasting machine, the combination with toe-lasting means havingwipers for wiping the margin of the toe end of an upper inwardly over aninsole on a last, of pressing means for moving a shoe and its lastheightwise relatively to said toe-lasting means by engagement with thebottom of the forepart only of the shoe before the wipers wipe themargin of the upper inwardly, said pressing means being reverselymovable thereafter to permit the bottom of the shoe to be forced morefirmly against the wipers, a spring-controlled toe rest movable with theshoe by the pressure of the shoe thereon when the shoe is moved by saidpressing means and reversely movable thus to force the shoe more firmlyagainst the wipers, a heel-end support mounted independently of said toerest to move with the toe rest in both directions, and means controlledby the toe rest for moving said heel-end support in each direction thesame distance only as the toe rest.

9. In a lasting machine, the combination with toe-lasting means havingwipers for wiping the margin of the toe end of an upper inwardly over aninsole on a last, of pressing means for moving a shoe and its lastheightwise relatively to said toe-lasting means by engagement with thebottom of the forepart only of the shoe before the Wipers wipe themargin of the upper inwardly, said pressing means being reverselymovable thereafter to permit the bottom of the shoe to be forced morefirmly against the wipers, a springcontrolled toe rest movable with theshoe by the pressure of the shoe thereon when the shoe is moved by saidpressing means and reversely movable thus to force the shoe more firmlyagainst the Wipers, a heel-end support mounted independently of said toerest to move with thetoe rest in both directions, a spring against theresistance of which said heel-end support is movable when the shoe ismoved heightwise by said pressing means, and mechanism arranged to beoperated by the movement of the toe rest thus to move the heel-endsupport against the resistance of its spring, said mechanism being soconstructed as to limit the heel-end support to reverse movement of thesame extent as that of the toe rest.

THEODORE P. COURCHENE.

